He looked a bit awkward as his wife helped him put the silver sparkling hat on just a few moments before everyone watched the ball drop on television. A grandson, wearing a blue hat and blowing a horn, danced around him. He is a dignified man, born in Italy, who still prefers speaking Italian to English. I watched him watching the festivities, seated for the most part at the table in the kitchen, his expression alternately happy and animated, and then more than a little wistful. For our evening, he was Father Time.